, 1887-08-04
The Panama Canal.

Recent reports from Panama indi =
cate that work will shortly cease on
the line Of the proposed canal. The
Scientific imerjcdn, in speaking of
the subject, says: Unless the diff
culties III the way have been greatly
exaggerated. a further loan asked of
the deludcd investors, fer the most
part poor people, would be a cruel
wrong, because only serving to post
pone impending disaster and raise
hopes that cannot be realized. All
the work done for a twelvemonth, and
even longer, has consisted of the
dredging of soft material by contract
ors paid By the cube yard; men not
III anywise Identified with the project
and having no interest in either its
success or failure. Meantime the
projectors have been considering the
really formidable problems on the
solution OF which depends the final
accomplishment of the work. Fore
most of these is the control of the
torrents that at various periods pour
down the sides of the mountains. and
which, II unchecked, make all hope
of maintaining canal vain, and still
another is the obstacle interposed by
a mountain which has been found TO
be moving slowly into the very path
of the canal. Add to these the dead
hness of the climate and the import
ant difference between the mean level
OF the two oceans which the canal is
designed to connect, and it is not sur
prising that the engineers in charge
of the enterprise, skilled engineers as
they are, have not been able to dis
cover practical means OF accomplish
ing their purpose. Now, when it is
too late, the French investors will re
alize that the unfavorable report from
the United States which have followed
the work from its very inception have
not been animated by ungenerous
motives. At the international canal
congress, which met at Paris, May
Is. 1873, Admiral Ammen and Cap
tam Selfride, of our navy, and the
accredited representatives of the
United States, declared that the route
by way of Panama was impracticabIe.
Both these officers are identified with
series of careful surveys made
across various parts OF the isthmus,
including Panama, and their opinion
was supported by that of many 9th
er engineers who preceded them OH
the isthmus. But the French were
inexorable. Lieut.. Lucien n. B.
Wyse, of the French republican navy
had made a reconnaissance across
the isthmus, and the French engi-
neers, led by DeLesseps, who, it may
be said without prejudice to his fame
has won more victories in the line of
diplomacy than in that of engineer
ing, showed a hazty willingness to ac-
cept Wyse's conclusions, though they
We're opposed by the experience of
older and more experienced men than
he
Bad management was apparent at
the very start of, the enterprise, and
ii the two officers of the company
who recently came here from Panama
on their way homeward are to be be-
lieTed, this bad management has con
tInued up to the present. Large
quantities of material, as unnecessary
as IL WAS costly, have been constantly
sent out, only to rot or rust in the
> Stamps @ on the sides of the hills.
A many as fourteen locomotives, too
heavy for usa on the temporary lines
Constructed along the soft dump
mounds. are at tine present time rust
InS is:.d cnrroding in The various
sections, i: apparatus and tools in
vast quantities, whose de ign or
weight precludes It's use, is strewn
along the highways or remains I'M
packed upon the shores Of the port.
Reports say that both the French
AMI the United States governments
will lie asked IN turn to take up and
carry out the project of u canal at
Panama, but it il not likely that
either Will do SO. No doubt strenuous
efforts will be made to re-organize
the present company, if these me-
gohatious fail, and to secure more
capital. There is little probability.
however, that much more money will
be expended on this unfortunate
scheme, .here already several
Thousand human lives have been
sacrificed and over $275,OOO.000 ex-
pended, and all for nothing.